She got a B
by pansy1980
Summary: At 18, Kathryn gets her first taste of the real world. Chapter 4 is new! Enjoy and remember the magic word- "FEEDBACK!" STORY IS FINISHED!
1. Chapter 1

She got a B

At 18, Kathryn gets her first taste of the real world.

It had started innocently enough. Kathryn had remembered the day clearly. She had just enrolled into Starfleet Academy, and her advisor had given her the new schedule. It seemed easy enough. Quantum Mechanics, Physics, Advanced Biology, Calculus, and 21 century studies.

She groaned as she saw the last class. But when she realized that it was a requirement Kathryn knew that their was no getting around it.

And so began her first day, at her new school.

Quantum Mechanics she had decided early on was going to be relatively easy. And she was mostly right. Most of the things that the class were reviewing were things that she had studied years ago.

Physics was a joke. The material was easy, and she probably had learned more from her father, than the teacher learned in grad school. She sighed and looked around the classroom at the students rapidly typing on their keypads.

Biology and Calculus were both going to be a little challenging. Kathryn had the same teacher for both classes and he was very strict. But Kathryn wasn't worried; she could handle anything that was thrown her way. Or so she thought.

As she made her way toward the cafeteria, she glanced at her scheduled time for her last class. Kathryn had more than enough time to have a snack and begin some of her homework. After finishing her sandwich and some of her reading she noticed the time. She put her books back in her bag and headed toward class. Kathryn prided herself for being punctual.

As she opened the door to her class she noticed that there were a lot of students already seated. The instructor turned at the intrusion at the door.

"May I help you?"

"I am here for a class about the 21st century. But I didn't know that there was another class going on. I'm sorry for disturbing you."

The instructor frowned at her. "Miss, this is the class about the 21st century, and you are late and I do not tolerate lateness in my class ever."

Kathryn took the schedule out of her pocket. "Sir, with all do respect my schedule says that this class begins at 0400."

The instructor took his padd from his desk. "What is your name?"

"Kathryn Janeway."

The teacher stood in front of the podium with his hand still scrolling his padd. "Miss Janeway, a call was made to your home, regarding the new time for this class. In the future please check your messages. Now if you don't mind take a seat and let me restart my class."

Kathryn scurried to the back of the class to an available seat. She opened her book. The instructor was talking about the syllabus. She decided to take notes on the syllabus instead of asking the already irritated teacher for one.

The teacher continued to blabber on about what the class was about and what they would be studying in the class. It all seemed rather boring to Kathryn. And frankly she didn't understand what her instructor was talking about. She raised her hand to ask a question and the man almost sneered at her.

"Miss Janeway this class is not over for another hour."

"I know I just had a question."

"Well, if you had been on time for my class you would know that in _my_ class questions are answered at the end of class. That way there are no interruptions during class."

Kathryn sank back in her seat. And put her hand down.

At the end of class she wanted to leave quickly. However her teacher stopped her just as she was about to jet out the door.

"Miss Janeway may I speak to you for a moment? Or do you have another class to be late to?"

Kathryn tired to apologize for her tardiness but the teacher only said, "Sit."

Kathryn sat.

"In this class young lady we are to be punctual. I can already see that I am going to have major problems with you. I know your type very well. You think that you are smart that you can do everything with ease. That may be true in some class but not in this class. You will be expected to work hard."

Kathryn interjected. "I know how to work hard."

The teacher turned around and faced her. "Maybe you do, but in this class when you are late, you hand over your notes, and you don't receive today's handout materials. In this case that is your syllabus. So I hope that you make lots of friends in this class because you're going to need them. You are dismissed."


	2. Chapter 2

She got a B

Part 2

Despite how much Kathryn didn't like her teacher, she was determined to make it work. After all, he could have been having a bad day, or perhaps the teachers lounge was out of coffee today. She smiled to herself thinking about how challenging it would be for her to miss her daily doss of caffeine. She met some friends for dinner, and then went home to the dorm to work on some homework.

The next day she began her normal class routine. After lunch she watched the clock to make sure that she was on time this time for her class. Today, Kathryn was going to be early for her class. She was going to follow all the rules and hopefully win the trust of her professor.

When Kathryn arrived several students were already seated. Kathryn sat in the second row and turned to one of them.

"Hi, I'm Kathryn."

The young lady raised her head slightly and looked up at Kathryn. "I know who you are. You're the one who was late yesterday."

Kathryn cocked her head to the side. "But I am here early today."

Her classmate picked up her PADD and sighed. "Good for you, did you want a prize or something?"

"No, I was just trying to make conversation."

The women turned around and began chatting with another student. Obviously she was ignoring Kathryn. Kathryn turned around and faced a young man who was sitting behind her.

"Hi I'm Kathryn."

The young man smiled. "Nice to meet you Kathryn. My name is Justin. This is my first day in this class."

Kathryn smiled back. Justin had a handsome smile. "Let me put it this way Justin, don't ask any questions until after class and never be late. The instructor will never let you live it down."

Justin shook his head. "Dually noted."

Kathryn was going to keep talking to Justin but the bell rang. She turned around in her seat. Ready to learn. She briefly glanced around the room and noticed that everyone in the class was reading something. Not wanting to raise suspicion from the teacher, she grabbed a few of her Biology notes from her knapsack and began to read them.

The instructor looked around the room and then spoke.

"Class we have another new student joining us today. His name is Justin. Since he is new I am going to review the rules of this class for you. These rules are to be taken seriously and any deviation from them will acute a lowering of your grade. "

"First of all my name is Mr. Davis. I am the instructor for 21 century history. This is a required class, and if you think that you want to transfer to another teacher because you don't like me, let me just inform you that I am the ONLY teacher for this class. "

Kathryn rolled her eyes. So much for that thought.

"Please write down these rules as they are very important."

"Rule #1- Tardiness will not be tolerated in this class. If you are late you will not receive credit for this class or for any homework that you turn in. Any class work you complete during the class will also count for no credit for the day."

"Rule #2- If a classmate is late or absent from this class you are not allowed to give them any information regarding the class period. That included homework, test dates, quizzes, notes, etc."

"Rule #3- There will be no questions allowed until the class is completely over. I do not like my lectures to be interrupted.

"Rule #4- IF a student is caught cheating or giving away any information from class to another student your work will not be counted."

Kathryn couldn't believe what she was hearing. The more Mr. Davis talked the less she liked him. In fact she was fairly certain that she probably disliked him more than missing her daily cups of coffee. She tried to concentrate on what he was saying but every time he opened his mouth she got angrier.

"Rule #6- No eating or drinking in my class at any time."

Kathryn realized in that moment that she had missed one of the rules.

"Damn!"

Everyone in the class looked over at her. Had she said that out loud? There was no way that she had.

"Miss Janeway, it seems that you are starting on the wrong foot in my class. Obviously someone wants to take this quarter over again. You will not be receiving credit for today, do I make myself clear?"

It was pointless to argue with the man. "Yes sir."

Mr. Davis nodded and began his lecture.

"For our first topic we are going to discuss the thinking around the end of the year 1999. Many of you have probably read about how people thought that the end of the world was going to happen in the next year. People also thought that because of a computer glitch that everything was going to shut down. This phenomenon was noted in history as the Y2K. During this time people hoarded money thinking that all access to money would be impossible. They hoarded food and water thinking that the end was near. Of course we now know that this never happened. That life continued without a hitch and now Y2K is just a part of history."

"For your assignment tomorrow class I would like you to write a paper on the possible effects on society if Y2K would have happened. What would you have done in these people's places. Please make sure to document your work and also to give a minimum of 12 citations in your paper. Papers should be no longer than 10 pages, and no shorter than 8. And when I mean 10 I mean 10. Not 10 ½ not 10 ¼ or vise versa. Single spaced only. Due on my desk at 03:30 or it will not count for credit. You are dismissed, see you tomorrow."

Kathryn was putting her padd in her bag when Justin tapped her on her shoulder. "Tough class."

She was about to respond to him when Mr. Davis called out.

"Miss Janeway I hope that you intend on following the rules tomorrow. You are already 2 days behind in my class and most students have a difficult time remaining in my class after such a lengthy absence."

Kathryn smiled politely at the man and spoke. "I intend to beat the odds Mr. Davis."

"A challenge Miss Janeway. I look forward to seeing if you can prove me wrong."

And with that Mr. Davis left the classroom. Kathryn turned to Justin and smiled. "What a jerk," they said in unison. They both laughed at the irony.

"Can I buy you a cup of coffee Kathryn?"

Kathryn smiled. "Now you're speaking my language."

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

She got a B

Part 3

After a long night of cramming Kathryn finished her 10 page paper. She was so exhausted that she actually forgot to drink her late night cup of coffee. She retreated to the bedroom and only slept for a couple of hours before the sun penetrated through the blinds of her building.

Slowly Kathryn got out of bed and got dressed. She grabbed her paper on her way out the door and headed off to Mr. Davis's office. She put her paper through the slot, and didn't think of it for the rest of the day.

That afternoon Kathryn entered her favorite class, 21st century studies. She was determined to shut up and not make any more mistakes today. After all she was getting fed up with Mr. Davis. But she knew that she needed the credit so she figured she should just suck it up.

Mr. Davis arrived promptly and placed his briefcase on the table.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I have graded your papers. I will be handing them out by grade. Some of you need to work on your research and your citations. A few of you should even consider dropping out of my class and going back to high school. But there were a few good papers. There are only two in this class that received an A on their papers. Those students should come up here and gather their papers."

"The first person is Justin T."

Kathryn held her breath.

"The other is Miss Kathryn Janeway."

Kathryn walked over to Justin. He was smiling at her. She couldn't help but smile back at him. She noticed the smile that Mr. Davis had on his face. He was obviously very impressed by her work. The two of them stood next to one another while Mr. Davis continued his ramblings.

"These students are the ones that you should look to for help. If you are struggling ask them for your assistance. If you received a paper below a C you should consider yourself in trouble. Any lower than that and you should consider leaving my class."

Mr. Davis turned and looked at Kathryn and Justin. "You two however are neck and neck in this class. From now on you two will be competing with one another regarding your grades. Who ever gets the highest grade at the end of this class will get my personal letter of recommendation. You two may be seated."

Mr. Davis took out a padd and began his new lecture.

"Today's lesson is going to be a little more complicated. We are going to discuss a topic that many of you have probably never heard of before. It is something that was lost in history. But something that is a very important part of history. Today's topic is illegal immigration."

And so the days went by. Kathryn and Justin seemed to enjoy their rivalry. Kathryn enjoyed the challenge and Justin enjoyed seeing her smile. The two of them began to date. And Justin felt privileged to have someone of her stature on his arm.

When Kathryn introduced him to her father, the admiral even he was impressed by his wit and kindness. Kathryn had never seen her father take to one of her boyfriends in such a kind and loving way.

The semester was winding down and Kathryn and Justin were still neck and neck grade wise. Mr. Davis had thrown everything at them trying to make one of them stumble just a bit. The rest of the class was far behind both of them.

And then it happened. Kathryn remembered the last month of class Mr. Davis had given them an assignment like no other. The assignment was for them to write a paper about what was important to them. What drove them to excel the way that they did. And how they managed to even though he was one of the most difficult teachers either of them had ever had.

Kathryn had a difficult time with the assignment. She spent days thinking about what to write.

Justin on the other hand seemed to have finished his paper easily.

Kathryn was puzzled but determined.

But Justin was already finished.

A week before the paper was due Justin and Kathryn went out on a date. Justin had told her to dress for a nice romantic restaurant outside of town. Kathryn had spent all day getting ready for her date. It was something very rare for her. Spending so much time with someone who had equal brains and interest.

When Justin arrived he was wearing a brown suit. Kathryn couldn't take her eyes off it. Or off of him.

Justin on the other hand couldn't take his eyes off of Kathryn in her long blue dress.

The two of them went to the quiet restaurant. They barely spoke and Kathryn was becoming more nervous by the second. Her hand traced the outside of her plate one last time and then she spoke.

"Justin is something the matter?"

"No, I was just thinking."

"About what Justin?"

"About how beautiful you look Kathryn. And about how smart and driven you are."

Kathryn blushed. "Thank you Justin but you are just as handsome and smart as I am."

What came next came as a surprise to Kathryn.

"Kathryn will you marry me? You don't have to answer now. In fact I would like to ask your father for permission tomorrow when he and I go on the shuttle."

Kathryn smiled and told him that she would think about it and let him know.

But she never got the chance.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

She got a B

Part 4

Kathryn's father and Justin died that day. The officials had told her that they had probably died instantly and that they felt nothing. Kathryn's stomach tightened around the idea of their last moments alive. A part of her wished that she had been with them.

It was a nippy afternoon as Kathryn made her way toward her class. It had been a week since her father's death and Justin's death. She felt like she was in a daze, unable to wake up. Her hands were cold as she stuffed them into her pockets. It was then that she noticed something in her right pocket. She took her hand out and recovered a small engagement ring. Justin had given it to her the day before he died. The tears that she could not cry before came out now.

Kathryn decided to mealy turn in her paper and leave. As she slid it through the slot she decided to go for a long walk. She really didn't know where she was going; all she wanted to do was go away.

A few days later Kathryn realized that she needed to go pick up her final grade from Mr. Davis. Frankly she really didn't care what her grade was. What was important a few weeks ago for Kathryn wasn't as important right now.

Kathryn went to the folder in the hallway that housed all of the student's grades. She skimmed through the letters until she got to her grade folder. It was empty except for a small handwritten paper that had the words, PLEASE SEE ME written on it.

Kathryn noticed the light on in Mr. Davis's office and knocked.

"Come in please."

Kathryn entered. "I got your note you wanted to see me."

"Kathryn, please let me offer my condolences to you regarding your loss. The reason that I wanted to see you is this."

He handed her a folder with Justin's name written on it.

"Kathryn I think you should read this before you see your final grade. It has been an interesting and rewarding experience teaching you. I wish you all the best in your future endeavors."

Kathryn thanked Mr. Davis and walked toward the lounge with the folder in her hand. She sat on one of the sofas next to the large picture and read. She didn't get far before the tears began to fall.

What I Find Important

Justin T.

_Many years ago what I thought was important was me. Not that I thought that everything revolved around me, but that I was an important factor in all regards._

_My grades have always been high, and there have only been a few that could keep me on my toes. In fact there is only one that I have ever met that has ever made me feel unworthy._

_Her name is Kathryn. Kathryn is one of those women that you have to strive to please. She is not easily fooled by imitations. She is genuine and expects you to be the same. She works hard and expects you to feel the same about work. She is someone that challenges me to be better than who I am. She is the one that fills my life with a purpose. And that purpose is to serve her for the rest of my life._

_I am planning on asking her to marry me. I want the most important thing in my life to be next to me for the rest of my life. Without her everything else is just empty. _

Kathryn finished the paper and folded it in half. When she was trying to write her paper she had had such a difficult time with it. But reading Justin's thoughts about her made her feel different. He had made her feel different about everything.

She opened her folder and noticed the grade that loomed over the top. She smiled at imperfection that was stamped at the top of the page. It wasn't that important. There was a time when she would have thought it meant everything. But at this point it really didn't matter.

**B**

Years Later-

It had been a long journey, but Voyager was finally home. Kathryn was in her quarters trying to pack up a few of the nick knacks of her quarters. As she was putting a few books into the closet, one of the books feel from her hand to the floor. A small wrinkled piece of paper slid from inside across the floor.

Kathryn went to pick it up and then realized what it was. She didn't remember putting it there. In fact she never remembered ever bringing it with her. She thought that she had thrown it away years ago.

"Where did this come from," she asked herself.

As she read through the lines that were written a long time ago something etched in the bottom of her belly started to become uncomfortable. As she read the last line she knew that she had to do something. Something big, something important.

As she had done years earlier she folder the paper and rang the quarters next to her.

A man answered the door.

"Kathryn is everything all right?"

Kathryn shook her head yes, but then immediately changed it to no. She stayed silent.

"Kathryn would you like to come in?"

Kathryn shook her head. "I just wanted to give you something that has been important to me for a long time. I wanted you to understand how I feel." She cleared her throat, "how I feel about you and how I think of you."

Chakotay put his elbow against the doorframe visibly amused by her stuttering and her silence. This woman was someone that always spoke her mind, about everything. And the fact that she was so uncomfortable in her current set of circumstances made her looks very cute.

He folded his hands in front of him and pretended not to notice her fidgeting.

"Kathryn would you like to come in and discuss this?"

Kathryn shook her head and entered his quarters. She mumbled something under her breath.

"I'm sorry Kathryn I didn't hear what you said."

She mumbled again. This time Chakotay had heard what she had said. But this time it was his chance to be quiet. The two of them stood staring at one another in silence until Kathryn finally blurted something out, loudly.

"Well aren't you going to say anything? I mean this whole trip I have wanted to say it to you and now I finally do and you don't say anything! You have always been a man of few words Chakotay but I never expected you to be quiet after I say something like that to you!"

Chakotay smiled and walked over to her.

"You know you're beautiful when you're angry."

He smiled at her and she knew that he felt the same way.

"I love you too Kathryn."

THE END


End file.
